Dissolvable thermal direct adhesive label and methods of assembly and use of the same

ABSTRACT

A label assembly including one or more dissolvable thermal direct adhesive labels and methods of assembly and use. According to one embodiment, each label includes a base layer, a thermal direct layer, an adhesive layer, and a barrier layer. The base layer, which has an upper surface and a lower surface, is water-dissolvable and may be made of a water-dissolvable paper. The thermal direct layer is positioned directly over the upper surface of the base layer and functions in the conventional manner to produce markings therein in response to heat. The adhesive layer is water-dissolvable and is positioned below the lower surface of the base layer. The barrier layer, which is positioned directly below the lower surface of the base layer and directly over the adhesive layer, serves to prevent migration of the adhesive layer through the base layer and into contact with the thermal direct layer.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a divisional of pending U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/152,463, inventor Priscilla Franklin, filed May14, 2008, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to adhesive labels and relatesmore particularly to dissolvable adhesive labels.

Reusable containers often have an adhesive label attached thereto toconvey certain information about the contents of the container. Forexample, in the restaurant industry, food is commonly stored in reusablefood containers that have an attached adhesive label indicating the typeof food contained in the container, the expiration date of the food,etc. Once the contents of the container have been removed, suchcontainers may be cleaned and reused. It is highly desirable that, aftereach use, the adhesive label be completely removed from the container.This is, in part, because adhesive residue left on the container afterwashing may lead to bacterial growth on the container. Such bacteriagrowth may lead to spoilage or contamination of the contents of thecontainer.

One approach to this problem has been to devise an adhesive label thatdissolves when contacted with water. Such a water-dissolvable adhesivelabel is commercially available from Avery Dennison Corporation(Pasadena, Calif.) as DISSOLVX® label. The aforementioned DISSOLVX®label includes a water-dissolvable paper, onto one surface of which awater-dissolvable adhesive is applied, the exposed surface of thewater-dissolvable adhesive being covered with a release liner. In use,the desired information is typically handwritten onto the exposedsurface of the water-dissolvable paper, the release liner is then peeledaway from the adhesive, and the exposed adhesive is then applied to thecontainer or other object. (Instead of handwriting the information onthe paper layer of the label, a hand-held ink labeler may be used toprint the information onto the paper layer of the label.)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new dissolvableadhesive label.

Therefore, according to one aspect of the invention, there is provided adissolvable thermal direct adhesive label, the dissolvable thermaldirect adhesive label comprising (a) a base layer, the base layer beingwater-dissolvable and having an upper surface and a lower surface; (b) athermal direct layer, the thermal direct layer being positioned over andcoupled to the upper surface of the base layer; and (c) an adhesivelayer, the adhesive layer being water-dissolvable, the adhesive layerbeing positioned below and coupled to the lower surface of the baselayer.

One advantage of the dissolvable adhesive label of the presentinvention, as compared to existing dissolvable adhesive labels, is thatthe dissolvable adhesive label of the present invention includes athermal direct layer. As a result, information that one wishes to conveyon the label may be printed on the label using thermal direct printing.Thermal direct printing affords a user with flexibility and ease ofprinting, particularly volume-printing, that far exceeds that obtainedby handwriting or using hand-held ink labelers. In addition, thermaldirect printing may permit the printing of machine-readable information,such as bar codes and the like.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a labelassembly, the label assembly comprising (a) a release liner; and (b) aplurality of dissolvable thermal direct adhesive labels releasablymounted on the release liner, each of said plurality of dissolvablethermal direct adhesive labels comprising (i) a base layer, the baselayer being water-dissolvable and having an upper surface and a lowersurface, (ii) a thermal direct layer, the thermal direct layer beingpositioned over and coupled to the upper surface of the base layer, and(iii) an adhesive layer, the adhesive layer being water-dissolvable, theadhesive layer being positioned below and coupled to the lower surfaceof the base layer.

Additional objects, features, advantages and aspects of the presentinvention will be set forth in part in the description which follows,and in part will be obvious from the description or may be learned bypractice of the invention. In the description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings which form a part thereof and in which is shown byway of illustration specific embodiments for practicing the invention.These embodiments will be described in sufficient detail to enable thoseskilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understoodthat other embodiments may be utilized and that structural changes maybe made without departing from the scope of the invention. The followingdetailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense,and the scope of the present invention is best defined by the appendedclaims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are hereby incorporated into andconstitute a part of this specification, illustrate preferredembodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serveto explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings wherein likereference numerals represent like parts:

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a first embodiment of a labelassembly constructed according to the teachings of the presentinvention, said label assembly including a dissolvable thermal directadhesive label;

FIG. 2 is a schematic top view of a second embodiment of a labelassembly constructed according to the teachings of the presentinvention, said label assembly including a plurality of dissolvablethermal direct adhesive labels; and

FIG. 3 is a schematic side view of a third embodiment of a labelassembly constructed according to the teachings of the presentinvention, said label assembly including a dissolvable thermal directadhesive label.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown a schematic side view of a firstembodiment of a label assembly constructed according to the teachings ofthe present invention, said label assembly being represented generallyby reference numeral 10.

Label assembly 10 may comprise a dissolvable thermal direct adhesivelabel 11 and a peelable release liner 12, dissolvable thermal directadhesive label 11 being releasably mounted on top of release liner 12.

Label 11, in turn, may comprise a water-dissolvable base layer 13, baselayer 13 having an upper surface 15 and a lower surface 17. Base layer13 may comprise a water-dissolvable paper. For reasons to becomeapparent below, base layer 13 preferably has a relatively lowporosity/relatively high density and a relatively smooth upper surface15. The aforementioned low porosity/high density and smooth uppersurface 15 may be improved, for example, by calendering base layer 13.An example of a water-dissolvable paper that may be suitable for use asbase layer 13 is AQUASOL® paper (Aquasol Corporation, North Tonawand,N.Y.), a water-dissolvable paper made of sodium carboxy methyl celluloseand wooden pulp. AQUASOL® paper has a basis weight of about 53.5 lbs perream (500 sheets 25 inches by 38 inches), a caliper of about 3.8 mil, atensile strength (machine direction) of about 30 g, a tear strength(machine direction) of about 34 g, and a smoothness of 115 SU and 132 SUfor its upper and lower surfaces, respectively (measured using a HAGERTYSMOOTHNESS TESTER device, Hagerty Technologies, Inc., Queensbury, N.Y.).

Another example of a water-dissolvable paper that may be suitable foruse as base layer 13 is a water-dissolvable rice paper.

Further examples of materials that may be suitable for use as base layer13 are disclosed in the following U.S. patents, all of which areincorporated herein by reference: U.S. Pat. No. 6,787,208, inventorGalovi, which issued Sep. 7, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,525,129, inventors Suet al., which issued Feb. 25, 2003; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,431,166,inventors Mizutani et al., which issued Mar. 4, 1969.

Label 11 may additionally comprise a thermal direct layer 21. Thermaldirect layer 21 may be positioned directly over and in contact withupper surface 15 of base layer 13. Thermal direct layer 21 may beconventional in its composition. Preferably, thermal direct layer 21 iswater-dispersible or water-soluble. Thermal direct layer 21 may comprisea basic chromogenic material and an acidic color developer material,both of which may be contained in a solid matrix or binder, wherein,when layer 21 is heated, one or both of the chromogenic material and thedeveloper material may be caused to flow into contact with one anotherand react, thereby producing a colored mark. The coat weight of thermaldirect layer 21 may be about 3 lbs per ream (500 sheets 25 inches by 38inches).

Examples of compounds that may be suitable for use as the aforementionedbasic chromogenic material may include (i) leuco dyes, such as3,3-bis(p-dimethylaminophenyl)-phthalide;3,3-bis(p-dimethylaminophenyl)-6-dimethylaminophthalide (Crystal VioletLactone); 3,3-bis(p-dimethylaminophenyl)-6-diethylaminophthalide;3,3-bis(p-dimethylaminophenyl)-6-chlorophthalide; and3,3-bis(p-dibutylaminophenyl)-phthalide, (ii) leuco bases of fluorandyes, such as 3-cyclohexylamino-6-chlorofluoran;3-(N,N-diethylamino)-5-methyl-7-(N,N-dibenzylamino) fluoran;3-dimethylamino-5,7-dimethylfluoran; 3-diethylamino-7-methylfluoran;3-diethylamino-6-methyl-7-chlorofluoran;3-pyrrolidino-6-methyl-7-anilinofluoran; and2-[3,6-bis(diethylamino)-9-(0-chloroanilino) xanthylbenzoic acidlactam]; and (iii) lactone compounds, such as3-(2′-hydroxy-4′-dimethylaminophenyl)-3-(2′[-methoxy-5′-chlorophenyl)phthalide;3-(2′-hydroxy-4′-dimethylaminophenyl)-3-(2′-methoxy-5′-nitrophenylphthalide;3-(2′-hydroxy-4′-diethylaminophenyl)-3-(2′-methoxy-5′-methylphenyl)phthalide;and3-(2′-methoxy-4′-dimethylaminophenyl)-3-(2′-hydroxy-4′-chloro-5′-methylphenyl)-phthalide.

Examples of compounds that may be suitable for use as theabove-mentioned developer material may include phenol compounds, organicacids or metals salts thereof, and hydroxybenzoic acid esters. Preferredcolor developers may be phenol compounds and organic acids which melt atabout 50° C. to 250° C. and are sparingly soluble in water. Examples ofsuitable phenols may include 4,4′-isopropylene-diphenol (bisphenol A);p-tert-butylphenol; 2,4-dinitrophenol; 3,4-dichlorophenol;p-phenylphenol; 4,4-cyclohexylidenephenol;2,2-bis(4′-hydroxyphenyl)-n-heptane; and 4,4′-cyclohexylidene phenol.Examples of suitable organic acid and metal salts thereof include3-tert-butylsalicylic acid; 3,5-tert-butylsalicylic acid;5-a-methylbenzylsalicylic acid and salts thereof of zinc, lead,aluminum, magnesium or nickel.

Examples of compounds that may be suitable for use as theabove-mentioned solid matrix or binder material may include (i) watersoluble binders, such as polyvinyl alcohol; hydroxy ethylcellulose;methylcelluose; methyl-hydroxypropylcellulose; starch; modifiedstarches; gelatin and the like, and (ii) latex materials, such aspolyacrylates; polyvinylacetates; polystyrene and the like.

Thermal direct layer 21 may additionally include a sensitizer orthermosensitivity promoter agent to enhance color density. Examples ofcompounds that may be suitable for use as a sensitizer may include fattyacid amide compounds, such as acetamide, stearic acid amide, linolenicacid amide, lauric acid amide, myristic acid amide, methylol compoundsor the above mentioned fatty acid amides, such asmethylene-bis(stearamide), and ethylene-bis(stearamide), and compoundsof p-hydroxybenzoic acid esters, such as methyl p-hydroxybenzoate,n-propyl p-hydroxybenzoate, isopropyl p-hydroxybenzoate, benzylp-hydroxybenzoate.

The components of thermal direct layer 21 may be substantiallyhomogeneously distributed therethroughout. In manufacturing thermaldirect layer 21, a coating composition may be prepared, which coatingcomposition may include a fine dispersion of the components of thecolor-forming system, the solid matrix material, surface active agents,and other additives in an aqueous coating medium. The coatingcomposition may further include inert pigments, such as clay, talc,aluminum hydroxide, calcined kaolin clay and calcium carbonate;synthetic pigments, such as urea-formaldehyde resin pigments; naturalwaxes, such as Carnuba wax; synthetic waxes; lubricants, such as zincstearate; wetting agents and defoamers. Thermal layer 21 may be formedby coating, for example, in the conventional manner, the aforementionedcoating composition directly onto upper surface 15 of base layer 13.(Because base layer 13 is water-dissolvable, it may be desirable toadjust the water content of the coating composition to minimize thedissolving of base layer 13 during the coating process.) As noted above,base layer 13 preferably has a low porosity/high density and a smoothupper surface 15. Such properties of base layer 13 minimize variationsin the physical uniformity of thermal layer 21 coated thereover and,thereby, improve the legibility of information conveyed by thermal layer21.

Additional information regarding the composition and preparation ofthermal direct layer 21 may be found in the following U.S. patents, allof which are incorporated herein by reference: U.S. Pat. No. 6,562,755,inventors Halbrook, Jr. et al., which issued May 13, 2003; U.S. Pat. No.5,821,196, inventors Schulz et al., which issued Oct. 13, 1998; U.S.Pat. No. 4,470,057, inventor Glanz, which issued Sep. 4, 1984; U.S. Pat.No. 4,246,318, inventor Baum, which issued Jan. 20, 1981; U.S. Pat. No.4,181,771, inventors Hanson et al., which issued Jan. 1, 1980; U.S. Pat.No. 4,151,748, inventor Baum, which issued May 1, 1979; U.S. Pat. No.3,746,675, inventors Blose et al., which issued Jul. 17, 1973; U.S. Pat.No. 3,674,535, inventors Blose et al., which issued Jul. 4, 1972; andU.S. Pat. No. 3,539,375, inventor Baum, which issued Nov. 10, 1970.

Label 11 may further comprise a water-dissolvable, pressure-sensitiveadhesive layer 31, adhesive layer 31 being positioned below lowersurface 17 of base layer 13. Examples of adhesive materials that may besuitable for use as adhesive layer 31 may include acrylic emulsion basedadhesives and copolymers of a carboxylic hydroxyalkyl ester monomer andan ethoxylated or propoxylated hydroxyalkyl (meth)acrylate. Additionaladhesives suitable for use as adhesive layer 31 may be found, forexample, in the following patents, all of which are incorporated hereinby reference: U.S. Pat. No. 6,787,208, inventor Galovic, which issuedSep. 7, 2004; U.S. Pat. No. 6,525,129, inventors Su et al., which issuedFeb. 25, 2003; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,395,907, inventor Zajaczkowski, whichissued Mar. 7, 1995.

Label 11 may optionally further comprise a barrier layer 41, barrierlayer 41 being positioned directly below and in contact with lowersurface 17 of base layer 13 and being positioned directly above and incontact with adhesive layer 31. The purpose of barrier layer 41 is toprevent the migration of adhesive layer 31 through base layer 13 andinto contact with thermal direct layer 21, where adhesive layer 31 maycause the undesired activation of the coloring system of thermal directlayer 21. Accordingly, barrier layer 41 may comprise a suitable coating,such as a resin-based coating, capable of sealing the pores of baselayer 13 while, at the same time, being sufficiently inert so as not toaffect the desired characteristics of adhesive layer 31, base layer 13,or thermal direct layer 21. Preferably, barrier layer 41 iswater-dispersible or water-soluble.

Label 11 may further comprise a protective overcoat (see, for example,protective overcoat 61 in FIG. 3) applied directly on top of thermaldirect layer 21. Such an overcoat may be conventional in nature and mayinclude one or more acrylate coatings, polyvinyl alcohol coatings,polyvinyl chloride coatings, styrenated layers and styrenated maleicanhydride layers as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,843,864, which isincorporated herein by reference, and cellulose binders with a syntheticwax, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,740,495, which is incorporatedherein by reference.

Release liner 12, which may be conventional in construction, may includea support 53 and a release 55. Support 53 may comprise, for example,paper, plastic-coated paper or a polymeric film. Release 55, which maybe applied to the top surface of support 53 and which may be in directcontact with the bottom surface of adhesive layer 31, may be, forexample, a silicone coating. To facilitate the peeling away of releaseliner 12 from label 11, release liner 12 may have a different footprintthan label 11, may be cut into a plurality of pieces, or may include atear-line to facilitate being torn into a plurality of pieces.

To produce label assembly 10, the adhesive composition used to formadhesive layer 31 may be applied to the top surface of release 55 ofrelease liner 51 using a conventional method. The coated adhesive maythen be air-dried or oven-dried to form adhesive layer 31 on releaseliner 51. Independently of the above, thermal layer 21 may be applied totop surface 15 of base layer 13, and barrier layer 41 may be applied tobottom surface 17 of base layer 13. Then, barrier layer 41 may belaminated to the adhesively-coated release liner to form assembly 10.

In use, label assembly 10 may be fed into a conventional thermal directprinter, and desired information may be printed on thermal layer 21using the thermal direct printer in the conventional fashion.Thereafter, label 11 may be peeled away from release liner 12, and label11 may be adhered to a suitable object by contacting adhesive layer 31with the object. When removal of label 11 from the object is desired,label 11 is contacted with water, causing label 11 to dissolve, disperseor otherwise disintegrate.

It should be understood that, although label assembly 10 is shown withonly a single label 11 releasably mounted on release liner 12, thepresent invention is not limited to such a construction and may includeassemblies in which a plurality of labels are releasably mounted on acommon release liner. One example of such an assembly is shown in FIG. 2and is represented generally by reference numeral 110. Assembly 110 mayinclude a plurality of labels 111 releasably mounted on a common releaseliner 112 (it being understood that the number of labels 111 shown inassembly 110 is merely illustrative). Each of labels 111 may beidentical to label 11. Release liner 112 may be similar in most respectsto release liner 12, the principal difference being that release liner112 may be appropriately dimensioned to accommodate a plurality oflabels 111 thereon.

Assembly 110 may be formed by providing a continuous laminate comprisinga thermal direct layer, a water-dissolvable base layer, a barrier layer,a water-dissolvable adhesive layer, and a release liner, wherein all ofsaid components have a substantially identical footprint, and thendie-cutting or otherwise converting the laminate to produce a pluralityof discrete labels 111 on a common release liner 112.

The embodiments of the present invention recited herein are intended tobe merely exemplary and those skilled in the art will be able to makenumerous variations and modifications to it without departing from thespirit of the present invention. All such variations and modificationsare intended to be within the scope of the present invention as definedby the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for the use of a dissolvable thermaldirect adhesive label comprising: (a) a release liner; and (b) aplurality of dissolvable thermal direct adhesive labels releasablymounted on the release liner, each of said plurality of dissolvablethermal direct adhesive labels comprising (i) a base layer, the baselayer being water-dissolvable and having an upper surface and a lowersurface, wherein the base layer is a monolayer of a water-dissolvablepaper made of sodium carboxy methyl cellulose and wooden pulp, (ii) athermal direct layer, the thermal direct layer being positioned over andin direct contact with the upper surface of the base layer, the thermaldirect layer being coupled to the upper surface of the base layer,wherein the thermal direct layer is one of water-dispersible andwater-soluble, wherein the thermal direct layer is a monolayercomprising a basic chromogenic material and an acidic color developermaterial, both of which are contained in a solid matrix, and wherein thecomponents of the thermal direct layer are substantially homogeneouslydistributed therethroughout, (iii) an adhesive layer, the adhesive layerbeing water-dissolvable, the adhesive layer being positioned below andcoupled to the lower surface of the base layer, wherein the adhesivelayer comprises copolymers of a carboxylic hydroxyalkyl ester monomerand an ethoxylated or propoxylated hydroxyalkyl (meth)acrylate, and (iv)a water-soluble barrier layer, the water-soluble barrier layer beingpositioned below and in direct contact with the lower surface of thebase layer and being positioned above and in direct contact with theadhesive layer, the water-soluble barrier layer preventing migration ofthe adhesive layer through the base layer and into contact with thethermal direct layer, and (v) a protective overcoat, the protectiveovercoat being positioned over and in direct contact with the thermaldirect layer, the protective overcoat comprising one or more acrylatecoatings, polyvinyl chloride coatings, styrenated layers and styrenatedmaleic anhydride layers.
 2. The method for in use, label assemblyaccording to claim 1, where the label assembly may be fed into aconventional thermal direct printer, and desired information may beprinted on thermal layer using the thermal direct printer in theconventional fashion.
 3. The method for in use, label assembly accordingto claim 1, where the label may be peeled away from release liner andadhered to a suitable object by contacting adhesive layer with theobject.
 4. The method for in use, label assembly according to claim 1,where the release liner may have a different footprint than label. 5.The method for in use, label assembly according to claim 1, where therelease liner may be cut into a plurality of pieces.
 6. The method forin use, label assembly according to claim 5, where the release liner mayinclude a tear-line to facilitate being torn into a plurality of pieces.7. The method for in use, label assembly according to claim 1, wherewhen removal of label from the object is desired, label is contactedwith water, causing label to dissolve disperse or disintegrate.
 8. Themethod for in use, label assembly according to claim 1, where the labelmay include a plurality of labels that are releasably mounted on acommon release liner.
 9. The method for in use, label assembly accordingto claim 8, where the label(s) may be identical to the initial label.10. The method for in use, label assembly according to claim 1, wherethe adhesive composition used to form adhesive layer may be applied tothe top surface of release of release liner using a conventional method.11. The method for in use, label assembly according to claim 1, wherethe coated adhesive may then be air-dried or oven-dried to form adhesivelayer on release liner.
 12. The method for in use, label assemblyaccording to claim 1, where the adhesive layer is a pressure-sensitiveadhesive layer.
 13. The method for the use of a label assemblycomprising a release liner and a dissolvable thermal direct adhesivelabel as recited in claim 1, the dissolvable thermal direct adhesivelabel being releasably mounted on the release liner.
 14. A method forthe assembly of a dissolvable thermal direct adhesive label comprising:providing a continuous laminate with a thermal direct layer, thelaminate having a water-dissolvable adhesive layer and a release liner;converting the laminate to produce a plurality of discrete labels on therelease liner; and placing a protective overcoat over the laminate. 15.The method for the assembly of a dissolvable thermal direct adhesivelabel of claim 14, where all of the discrete labels have a substantiallyidentical footprint.
 16. The method for the assembly of a dissolvablethermal direct adhesive label of claim 14, where the step of converting,may be done by die cutting.
 17. The method for an assembly of adissolvable thermal direct adhesive label of claim 14, wherein therelease liner comprises a support and a release, the release beingpositioned over the support and wherein each of the dissolvable thermaldirect adhesive labels is positioned over the release.
 18. The methodfor the assembly of a dissolvable thermal direct adhesive label of claim14, where the adhesive layer of each of the dissolvable thermal directadhesive label(s) is in direct contact with the release liner.
 19. Themethod for the assembly of a dissolvable thermal direct adhesive labelof claim 14, where the water-dissolvable adhesive layer has an uppersurface and a lower surface.
 20. The method for the assembly of adissolvable thermal direct adhesive label of claim 19, where thewater-dissolvable adhesive layer is a monolayer of a water-dissolvablematerial.